Chapter 4

"People who come to wish Ella a happy birthday bring gifts that money can't even buy. And you, Daniel, have to use Eleanor's credit card just to buy her a thousand-dollar purse. Honestly, it's the thought that counts, so why do you have to buy something so expensive?"

Charles might as well have pointed a finger in my face and called me a worthless parasite who could only survive by clinging to a woman. In his eyes, what could someone like me possibly give Eleanor? And whatever I spent on her would still be her money in the end anyway.

The people around us immediately sided with him. Their judgment shifted in an instant, and the curious looks they'd been giving me turned into open contempt. It was as if Charles had just reminded everyone exactly where they thought I belonged.

My expression didn't change as I watched Eleanor slowly unwrap the gift. When she pulled away the final ribbon and opened the box, the contents were revealed.

The noisy ballroom fell completely silent.

As if I hadn't noticed the sudden shift in the atmosphere, I smiled and began to applaud.

"Happy birthday, Eleanor. Sign it. I bet this is the best gift you'll get tonight."

There was no birthday present inside.

Instead, neatly folded within the box was a document—a divorce agreement, already bearing my signature.

The entire ballroom erupted in shock.

Whatever excitement Eleanor had felt while opening the gift vanished in an instant. Her face darkened, her expression turning frighteningly cold as the room filled with laughter and whispers. Everyone seemed ready to mock me for throwing away the life I'd been given and bringing this disaster upon myself.

Then, without warning, Eleanor tore the divorce agreement to pieces. She flung the scraps into the air, and they drifted down around her like snow. All the anger she'd been holding inside finally broke free in a low, furious growl.

"Dream on! Daniel, in this life, you're always going to be my husband—even in death!"

For a moment, even I stood frozen. I'd never seen Eleanor like this before. I quickly searched through everything the system had recorded about her, but I couldn't find a single explanation that matched her behavior.

She looked fragile and furious at the same time, as if one spark was all it would take to set her completely ablaze.

The ballroom fell deathly silent. Eleanor seemed to realize she'd lost control, and for a moment, she stood there trying to compose herself.

But the instant her eyes met my emotionless gaze, whatever composure she'd managed to regain vanished.

Ignoring the stunned guests around us, she grabbed my arm and dragged me into the bedroom. The moment we were alone, all the vulnerability she'd been desperately trying to hide came spilling out.

"Didn't we promise we'd never leave each other? You loved me so much. How could you just stop loving me?"

She buried her face against my neck, her hot breath mingling with the scalding tears running down my skin. The sensation tickled, and for some reason, it irritated me even more.

The system's analysis had already confirmed that her breakdown wasn't an act. She was genuinely falling apart.

"We? We ended a long time ago." My voice remained calm. "The moment you openly cheated on me and brought Charles home, I told you again and again that we were over. You just never believed me."

As I spoke, I pulled out a tissue and irritably wiped the tears from my neck. The simple gesture visibly crushed Eleanor. She stumbled backward several steps, staring at me as though she'd just been struck.

"We weren't together for five days or five months. We were together for five whole years!" Her voice trembled. "How can you be so cruel? How can you just forget everything?"

My expression remained indifferent.

"Ms. Hayes, I'll admit that I used to be completely obsessed with you. But you know that was in the past."

I paused and pointed to my chest.

"The love I had for you is gone now. And I suppose I should thank you for that. Otherwise, I never would have realized that loving you was nothing more than a failed piece of data that needed to be deleted."

Those words shattered whatever remained of Eleanor's emotional defenses.

After a brief moment of stunned silence, Eleanor suddenly lifted her head. The pleading in her eyes disappeared, replaced by a surge of fury and dark, wounded humiliation.

"Daniel, who the hell are you putting on this act for? How could you possibly not love me? Do you really think I can't live without you?"

Her voice grew louder with every word. "I'll prove you wrong. I'll be even better off without you!"

Then she screamed, "You want a divorce? Not a chance!"

She grabbed an invitation from the table and hurled it into my arms.

"Three days from now is my engagement party with Charles. You'd better be there."

Each word came slowly, deliberately, like a knife twisting deeper into a wound. Her eyes stayed fixed on mine, desperately searching my face for even the slightest trace of heartbreak or regret.

But the moment I caught the invitation, the only thought that crossed my mind was a practical one: I wondered what the legal punishment for bigamy was.

For the next three days, I buried myself in my studio, shutting out everything beyond its walls. It wasn't until the deafening sound of guests laughing, chatting, and raising their glasses outside finally broke through that I remembered what day it was—Eleanor and Charles' engagement party.

I slipped into a black suit, taking the time to make sure I looked sharp enough to turn heads.

When I finally stepped into the venue, the man and woman onstage looked like a perfect match. Charles stood beside Eleanor in a custom-made formal suit, smiling as he basked in the congratulations of their guests. Everyone around them seemed caught up in the celebration, but my attention passed over all of it and settled on the necklace around Eleanor's neck.

It was the Star of the Ocean.

My eyes lingered on it as the words from those yellowed pieces of paper flashed through my mind. Once, I'd believed every word written there. Now, standing beneath the bright lights as I watched her celebrate her engagement to another man, those promises seemed nothing short of absurd.

As if sensing my gaze, Eleanor looked up. She slipped an arm around Charles and deliberately raised her voice.

"Thank you all for coming to witness the happiness Charles and I have found. All the mistakes and obstacles from the past can finally be put behind us today."

The reporters immediately swarmed me, thrusting microphones toward my face and demanding to know how I felt about the engagement.

I glanced at Eleanor before answering loudly enough for everyone to hear.

"Of course, I had to come. Without me, this engagement party would be missing half the excitement."

With that, I headed for the stage and picked up a microphone.

Every eye in the room turned toward me. I gave the guests and reporters a perfectly polite smile, and almost immediately, people onstage began exchanging knowing looks. They clearly assumed I'd come to make a scene and crash the engagement. Suddenly, everyone seemed eager to see what I would do next.

But the moment Eleanor saw my smile, something seemed to click. Her expression changed completely.

Without warning, she bolted toward the backstage area like a woman possessed, moving so frantically that she didn't even notice she'd stepped on Charles' feet as she passed.

"Eleanor, you're too slow."

The moment the words left my mouth, a graphic video began playing across the massive screen.

The disturbing footage was enough to send a wave of horror through the entire room. Guests turned deathly pale, and even Charles' face drained of color as his body began to tremble uncontrollably. A few couldn't stomach what they were seeing and doubled over, vomiting right there in front of everyone.

I turned my attention to Eleanor. Her fists were clenched so tightly that her entire body trembled, as though sheer rage and humiliation were the only things keeping her upright.

My smile widened.

"My dear Ms. Hayes," I said, my voice almost cheerful, "consider this my wedding gift to you. Do you like it?"